The light that will lead us back

 

Let’s turn back to God – now! (Hosea 6:1-3) 
The story of Hosea and Gomer is one of the most interesting stories in the Bible. God spoke to Hosea, His prophet, and told him to marry a loose woman, a prostitute, and so he did.  But she was unfaithful and gave herself to other men and sinned against her husband. The sins of Gomer, the unfaithful wife, depicted the sins of God’s people, who just like her, turned their back on the Lord. 

I see a parallel in this story to our own nation.  In Hosea’s day God’s people were not only experiencing material prosperity, but also moral bankruptcy.  Their sins are listed in various places in this book.  They included cursing and swearing, deception and lying, murder, stealing, adultery, fornication, drunkenness, rebellion and idolatry, chasing after other gods and wrong-doing in general. 

America today may be materially prosperous, but we are as a nation sinking in moral decay.  Each does what is right “in his own eyes” and just like Hosea’s wife, many of God’s people have fallen into idolatry. But there was a “turning” in chapter 6.  They said, “Come, let us return to the Lord.  He will restore us (reconcile us to Himself) and then we will know Him and His ways again. If we press on to know Him again He will come to us as sure as the spring rains will come.” 

In the story of Hosea and Gomer his wife, the prophet went and bought his unfaithful wife from the slave market and restored her.  He could have just given up and said, “this woman humiliated me, she backslid, I’ll never speak to her again”, but instead he emptied his pockets and bought her back!  This demonstrates to us God’s faithful, unconditional love.  God loves America!  He loves His church. He loves you and me. God loves us enough to pursue us and restore us if we will only turn back to Him.   

It’s not too late my friends!  Even though we’ve drifted away from God, He will restore us in His great mercy if we will forsake our rebellious ways.  Let’s turn back to God. Get back to the Bible, back to the basics, back to serving the great “I AM”. Only then will we be restored to our former glory.

The pastor's Pocket
Pastor Bruce Freeman 

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